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We hope you find this arcthve useful. A subscription to The Small Business Advisor Newsletter is free. Subscribe now - it's easy! The Small Business Advisor Newsletter for January, 2003 ======================== ======================== It’s a new year … time to get serious
about that small or home-based business you have been thinking about.
We talk or otherwise communicate with many, many folks and only
a very few actually take that first step to starting a business.
If you have an idea for a business sit down and do some serious planning. Get some guidance from Chapter 6, Planning for Success in “The Small Business Start-Up Guide” which is available online (free!) at http://www.isquare.com/chapter6.cfm. This will help you focus your ideas into a workable strategy. Then visit Chapter 3, Getting Started, at http://www.isquare.com/chapter3.cfm. Learn about the various advantages and disadvantages of various business structures so that you can choose what is right for you. There is plenty of help available for those of you who want to pursue your business vision – and many are absolutely free. Here are a couple of places to start: The Small Business Advisor (of course!): http://www.isquare.com The point I’m trying to make is that for very little or no investment (except your time) you can take advantage of a tremendous amount of small business expertise. You have nothing to loose and everything to gain in pursuing your business idea. Give it a go! You just might be surprised at what could happen! ======================== When you know the answers to these 5 key marketing questions, you can create effective web pages, sales letters and other sales generating communications. The answers to these 5 questions reveal how you can get your prospect's attention and motivate them to take the action you want. 1. WHO DO I WANT TO REACH? Describe detailed characteristics of your ideal prospect. Be very specific. Once you clearly define the characteristics your ideal prospect you can develop a powerful sales message appealing directly to their unique interests and needs. Prospects are more likely to respond when they feel you are talking directly to them about their individual needs. 2. WHAT ACTION DO I WANT TO GENERATE? Decide in advance what action you are trying to stimulate. Do you want to get inquiries for your product or service? Do you want to produce sales directly from your promotion? Or do you want to build a list of qualified prospects willing to receive frequent offers from you? You can develop an effective promotion in a short time when you have a clear understanding of the action you are trying to generate. 3. WHAT IS MY COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE? Identify why prospects should do business with you instead of with a competitor selling a similar product or service. For example, do you provide faster results, easier procedures, personal attention or a better guarantee? If you cannot think of a reason - create one. Add something to your business you are not already doing. Your competitive advantage can be responsible for fifty percent or more of your sales. Make sure you have one - and don't lose it. Keep checking on your competition and make any changes necessary to keep your competitive advantage. 4. HOW WILL I PROVE MY CLAIMS? Don't expect prospects to believe what you say. Make sure you provide proof of any claim you make. For example, collect and use testimonials from satisfied customers. Provide research data supporting your claims. Get endorsements from experts your prospects are likely to recognize. 5. HOW WILL I CREATE URGENCY? Most prospects do not respond the first time they see your promotion. Instead, they delay making any response - then often forget about you. You can convert many of these procrastinators into buyers by giving them a compelling reason to respond immediately. For example, give them a special price if they order now - or include a valuable bonus if they order by a specific deadline. TIP: Develop a series of 4 or 5 different special offers. Use them one at a time with an expiration deadline. When one offer expires, replace it with the next offer and a new deadline. Continuously recycle through the same series of offers. This enables you to create urgency using special offers without taking time to create new ones. You need to answer to these 5 key marketing questions before you can create a motivating web page, sales letter or other sales generating communication. The answers to these 5 questions will reveal how you can get your prospect's attention and stimulate them to take the action you want. Return to top of page - Back to Home Page - Back to Archive Index |